Ph.D. in Business Administration
Program of Study
The program of study prepares students to conduct high quality research in a chosen discipline. Each concentration's programof study is described completely in materials supplied by each department. Course work is selected to strengthen each candidate's ability to conduct research in the chosen area of concentration.
The following information gives a brief description of the seven areas of concentration offered through the Ph.D. in Business Administration.
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The doctoral program of study consists of a minimum of 84 semester hours of graduate-level course work beyond the bachelor's degree. Approved master-degree-level course work up to 30 hours beyond deficiency and prerequisite courses may be included. A minimum of 30 hours of doctoral course work and 24 hours of dissertation and/or research are required to be taken at Arizona State University - Tempe campus.
Program Requirements
Program requirements may differ in terms of courses, examination types and the timing of examinations. In general, after completing all appropriate course work, doctoral students must pass a written comprehensive examination to demonstrate mastery of the subject matter and the ability to conduct independent research. An additional oral examination on the supporting course work may also be recommended. Upon passing the examination(s), students begin work with a personally selected faculty committee to complete a major research-based dissertation of an original and creative nature. The Ph.D. degree is awarded upon the successful completion of a final oral presentation on the dissertation.
Full-time Program
All Ph.D. students must spend an equivalent of one year of full-time graduate study in residence, on campus, and are expected to focus full-time efforts on his/her doctoral studies and/or fulfilling graduate assistantship responsibilities.
Concentrations
The objective of the Ph.D. in Business Administration with a concentration in Accountancy is to prepare scholars to conduct high-quality research and to teach in the fields of
- Financial and Managerial Accounting
- Auditing
- Taxation
- Information Systems
The program allows students to develop the capability to review, analyze, conduct, and publish research through a series of research seminars and theory-building and statistical course work that supplement and complement students' abilities and desires.
In addition, Ph.D. students work on research projects in conjunction with faculty members in the School of Accountancy.
The objective of the agribusiness Ph.D. program is to produce scholars who are trained in the latest methods of business and economic analysis and who can apply these methods to critical research problems faced by firms in the agribusiness industry. With this background, graduates with a concentration in agribusiness will assume teaching and research positions at top-ranked research universities.
Agribusiness Ph.D. students are involved with research in
- Consumer behavior in food markets
- Strategic marketing by food retailers
- Food and fiber supply-chain management
- Derivatives, commodity trading, and risk management
- International agricultural trade and policy
The objective of the Ph.D. in Business Administration with a concentration in Computer Information Systems is to prepare scholars for careers in leading educational institutions. Common areas of specialization for doctoral studies include
- Decision support systems
- Database management systems
- Artificial intelligence in business
- Systems analysis & design
- Distributed information systems
- Data mining
- IT infusion and human interface.
The program allows students to develop the capability to review, analyze, conduct and publish research through a series of research seminars and additional supporting course work.
Ph.D. students are encouraged to work on research projects with faculty in the Computer Information Systems area.
The Ph.D. in Business Administration with a concentration in Finance is designed to provide doctoral candidates with the qualitative and quantitative skills necessary to
- Conduct research and publish scientific journals
- Effectively teach courses in Finance at the university level
The Department of Finance holds high standards for scholarship. As a consequence, the doctoral program is rigorous, and should be viewed as a full-time commitment for a minimum of four years.
The Ph.D. in Business Administration with a concentration in Management is a broad field. The doctoral program is best suited for those students interested in specializing in
- Human resource management
- Organizational behavior
- Organizational theory
- Strategic management
The doctoral program places emphasis on the development of research competence and also emphasizes teaching as a vehicle to academic professionalism. The mission of the program is to provide an environment that is conducive to the development of scholars who are prepared to assume the diverse responsibilities of positions at leading institutions.
The Marketing department's research orientation spans a broad scope of topics including
- Strategic marketing management
- Consumer behavior
- Selling and sales management
- Advertising
- Channels management
- International marketing
- Business-to-business marketing
- Services marketing.
Many research projects involve both faculty and doctoral student collaboration. The Ph.D. in Business Administration with concentration in Marketing includes seminars in
- Marketing research
- Designs/methods
- Marketing management & strategy
- Buyer behavior
- Marketing theory
- Advanced marketing research
The Ph.D. in Business Administration with a concentration in Supply Chain Management integrates the fields of purchasing, operations management & logistics.
Some of the current research interest among departmental faculty include
- Logistics in corporate strategy
- Materials management and production control systems
- Global purchasing
- International logistics networks
- Service industry applications
- Project management
- Productivity
- Quality management